Up In Smoke
by obsessedwithstabler
Summary: Juliet O'Hara was nothing if not a good partner.


The Psych muse seems to be alive and well tonight! Depending on the response I get, I might go further with this. But for now, it's a oneshot. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Not mine!

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"Juliet! How are you, sweetheart?"

Juliet O'Hara smiled wearily as she held her front door opened and waved her guest inside. "I'm fine, Elizabeth. Just running a little late." Her second guest walked in behind Elizabeth. "How are you, Althea?"

"Just fine, baby. How's our boy?"

Closing the door behind Carlton's mother and her partner, Juliet offered them a false smile. "He's okay this morning. I was just about to bring him out for breakfast."

Always eager to help wherever she could, Althea shrugged off her jacket and hung it up before offering, "Is there anything we can help with?"

The younger woman glanced over her shoulder, in the direction of the kitchen. "If you could finish up breakfast for me while I get Carlton…"

Althea waved a hand pleasantly. "I'll take care of it, baby. No problem."

Relieved, Juliet nodded and hurried down the hall, into the bedroom next to hers. As she crossed the threshold, she paused momentarily as her memories took her back…

_The call came on a Thursday afternoon. Juliet was sitting at her desk, wondering where her partner was as her coffee grew cold beside a barely-touched muffin she had brought in for breakfast. It was close to noon now, and she hadn't gotten so much as a text from her partner. Just as she was reaching for her lukewarm coffee, her phone buzzed impatiently. She grabbed it eagerly, but the number flashing on the screen was not a familiar one. She answered anyway, and a moment later, her world came crashing down around her._

* * *

_The rubber of her sneakers made a disturbing sound as she raced down the hospital corridor. The ICU had never scared her before, but right now, it seemed to be the stuff nightmares were made of. All she could get out of the nurse who called was Carlton was in the ICU after a brutal attack which had occurred sometime in the previous night. Juliet cursed herself over and over for not calling him that morning. Normally she called him while getting ready for work, just in case he wanted a ride. She enjoyed their morning commutes together, when they could just make idle chitchat or go over the details of their most recent case. She hadn't called that morning because Shawn had forgotten to set the alarm clock and she overslept._

_Once she found someone who could help her, she was directed to the ICU room where she continued to cling to the hope that this was all just a dream, or they had the wrong person. Then she saw her partner's sweet face and the bandages wrapped around his head, stained with crimson, and her mouth opened in a silent scream._

Her eyes opened and she was back in Carlton's room. A year had passed since that fateful phone call, and she could still smell the antiseptic and feel the way Carlton's hand lay limply in her own. The attack had been perpetrated by the son of a man Juliet and Carlton had put away years ago. The father had died in jail, and apparently the son had planned to go after Juliet after his brutal assault on Carlton. Buzz had been the arresting officer, and it had taken every moral fiber of Juliet's being for her not to press her gun into the bastard's temple and pull the trigger. Carlton wouldn't have wanted that.

Carlton had been in a coma for three weeks. His doctors had been cautiously optimistic to begin with, but as the days trudged by, Juliet could feel their hope waning. They began to talk of brain damage and long-term care, if he even survived. The thought of Carlton having brain damage scared her at first, but as time progressed, she realized she didn't care. As long as he lived, she would take it and count herself the luckiest woman in the world.

The first week, Carlton's mother and Althea showed up at the hospital. Juliet took time off work (she had enough time accumulated that she could stay by his side for as long as she needed to) and rarely left the hospital except to rush home for a shower and quick nap. Everyone came to visit, including Shawn and Gus. But eventually, Shawn had enough. Juliet couldn't blame him; he was her boyfriend but Carlton was her partner and her best friend and he_ needed_ her so much more. So she stayed with him, content to be at his side and wait.

Three weeks after the violent attack, Carlton finally opened his eyes, and Juliet finally realized what lay ahead of them.

Shaking her head absently, Juliet put on a smile and approached Carlton. She eased back into work four months ago, just two months after bringing Carlton home from the hospital. Elizabeth and Althea had both wanted to take Carlton with them, but Juliet had fought them tooth and nail until they realized they were never going to win this battle against her. So Juliet had made all the necessary changes to her apartment, including cleaning out her spare bedroom and fitting it with a king-size bed, a dresser, his clothes and his most treasured possessions. She bought a gun safe and rearranged all the furniture in her home after Shawn moved his things out.

Elizabeth and Althea had been godsends. They visited at least every other day, bringing homemade food and treats, and when Juliet tentatively eased back into work, at least one of them came over every day and stayed with Carlton while Juliet was at work. She hated leaving him for any amount of time, but there came a time when it just wasn't feasible to be by his side every day and night.

"Juliet?"

The soft sound brought a real smile to Juliet's face. Hardly anything seemed to do that anymore. "Right here, Carlton." She made her way over to the window, where Carlton was sitting in his wheelchair. His face was turned toward the window, but when he heard her, he turned his head in her direction.

Her heart clenched when she saw the milky-white color that had replaced the beautiful cerulean she had once admired. She was a fool to ever hope he would escape such a vicious attack unscathed. The blows to his head had left him permanently blind, and though he technically could walk, he was often confined to a wheelchair due to the damage to the area of his brain which controlled his balance and ability to walk without aid. Since he had been left with some degree of brain damage, he had been forced into medical retirement and his self-esteem had taken a severe blow as a result. He struggled with depression and some suicidal thoughts, and some nights, Juliet was helpless to do anything but listen as he cried when he thought she was asleep. He was seeing a psychiatrist, but it did little to make things easier on them.

Kneeling down in front of his chair, Juliet placed one hand on his arm and the other on his leg. "Your mom and Althea are here. I'm running late, so they're going to finish cooking breakfast."

He nodded and grasped her hand lightly. If there was anything good to come out of this, it was the closeness that they had developed. She was there for him day and night, and at the beginning, he had resented her and the entire world for it. But eventually she was able to touch him without him pulling away, and now he wholeheartedly welcomed her touch. "You should get going."

"I will," she assured him. She squeezed his hand before she stood up and took the handles of his wheelchair. It was part of their morning routine. She would get up and help him take a shower and get dressed. Then she would put on the news for him while she took a quick shower and started breakfast. Usually by the time she was done cooking, Elizabeth or Althea was there and she would kiss Carlton goodbye before leaving for work. Sometime around lunchtime she would call and check on Carlton, and when it was time to go, she would say a hasty goodbye to her new partner as she hurried out the door. She would get home around five or six and eat dinner with Carlton before she began their nighttime ritual. It was hard, and when he had bad days it was all she could do to keep her mind on her work. When he had bad nights, she was usually late for work or she called in so she could stay with him. She knew Karen's patience was running thin, but her work just wasn't as important to her as it used to be. Maybe she would transfer into a different department with more stable hours and better pay. Carlton wasn't there anymore, and being at work without him had no appeal to her.

She pushed Carlton out of his room and down the hall, into the living room. Althea and Elizabeth greeted them brightly, as they did every morning. Breakfast was already laid out on the table, and Juliet grabbed some toast and a banana before she kissed Carlton's cheek. "I'll call you this afternoon."

"I know."

With a deep affection, Juliet ran her hand through his thick hair. Then she smiled at Elizabeth and Althea before she left the apartment.

She got a few feet down the hall before she realized her cheeks were wet with tears. She quickly wiped them away and tried to smile. At least she still had Carlton.

But the road to hell was paved with good intentions.

The End.


End file.
